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A Parent’s Guide to Understanding Teenage Brains

i had a new book release last week, and i’m pretty stoked about it. it’s the third in a series of five pocket-sized books for parents. i co-authored the first two books in the series (A Parent’s Guide to Understanding Teenage Girls was co-authored with brooklyn lindsey, and A Parent’s Guide to Understanding Teenage Guys was co-authored with brock morgan). adam mclane and i co-authored the fourth book in the series: A Parent’s Guide to Understanding Social Media, and we signed off on the interior a week ago (it should release about december 1). the final book, co-authored with joel mayward, is A Parent’s Guide to Understanding Sex & Dating. our deadline for hat manuscript is in a few weeks, and we’re almost done.

but this one — A Parent’s Guide to Understanding Teenage Brains — i wrote all by my little self. i’ve been so fascinated by the implications of brain development on faith development for years. but with new findings about teenage brains in the last decade, there’s SO MUCH that’s worth learning about.

this book is great for parents of teenagers, to be sure (that’s the core audience). but i really think youth workers of any sort would greatly benefit from reading it. it’s super inexpensive, and very quick to read (it’s only about 12,000 words or so). you can get it on The Youth Cartel store (or wherever you buy books!). you can even download a sample on The Youth Cartel store.

here’s the back cover copy:

It’s often tough to understand why teenagers do what they do. One moment they’re calm and rational, but the next they’re agitated and emotional. One day they’re making incredibly wise choices, but the next they’re making disastrous mistakes. Yesterday they earned your trust, but today it seems they’ve lost it once again.

Without an understanding of teenage brain development, we might miss life’s teachable moments or shut down our child’s curiosity with easy answers that don’t satisfy the search for truth happening below the surface.

That’s why Marko has written this book: to guide you through the world of the teenage brain, to help you understand and appreciate the amazing transformations it undergoes in adolescence to prepare children for adulthood and its many responsibilities.

4 thoughts on “A Parent’s Guide to Understanding Teenage Brains”

I am a middle school youth worker who is married to a middle school teacher, so we talk a lot about brain based learning and how it relates to faith development. This looks like a good read for us both.

I’m Mark Oestreicher

I'm a partner in The Youth Cartel, providing services and resources for individual youth workers and organizations. I’ve been married to Jeannie for 30 years, and have two great kids: Riley (22) and Max (18).
Here's The Youth Cartel's website.
twitter: @markosbeard
instagram: @whyismarko